Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1887-03-03
BIG CHECKS.
one was as Large as Alabama Award, Another
One Was Written on Sheet of Note Paper by
JAY Gould.

Jay could.
| The framing of two checks and their
appearance on the walls of President
| Depew's Office in the Grand Central Sta
tion has set people to talking and writing
about the big checks that have been
drawn in this country. Gne of these
checks was for 100000 and ii was
drawn by Cornelius Vanderbilt. The
other one for S6000,000, was drawn by
his son, William u. Vanderbuilt, and
many people thought the latter check
far as large as an amount as was ever
signed in this country. 1t does not re-
quire very large piece of paper to get
a pot of money ont of a bank, any more
than it requires ingenious chirography
of Spinner to make a greenback good.
The awkward scroll which no one would
make out as Jay Gould is just as good on
sheet of note paper as If the check was
beautifully engraved, thsn made out with
black and red ink, oountersigned, punch
ed, and stamped The New York Central
checks, by the way, have on their face
handsomely engraved portrait on steel of
the old commodore, and they have taken
many millions of money ont of the
Chemical National bauk. The money
that they could call for has also contrib
uted largely TO the handsome profits of
bank that, with only 100000 capital, has
deposits of fifty times as much, and pays
its stockholders 100 per cent. per annum.
Yet that is only trihe over three per
cent. per annum on the market value of
the stock. One clerk writes off the checks
that Jay Cook g. Co. used to draw.
They did sign some big checks, but they
seldom ran ever $1,000,000, though Fisk
d Hatch often paid some amounting to
more than that when they were refunding
the -thirties into The five-twenties.
The writer learned the business they
were doing while looking over their old
checks in the boxes on the upper floor of
the Peoples bank, in Philadelphia.
When business was good clerk was kept
running between the sub-treasury and
their Office getting the new bonds and
paying for them; they paid in advance
for every bond they received and they
sold them so fast that in one day they
had drawn about forty nhecks-the lowest
for $4,000 and the largest for S365,000.
On that one day for which / picked up
the vouchers they had sold over S5,000,000
of the new bonds over the counter. In
the year of their failure their foreign ex
change was netting them profit at the
rate of over 100000 year, for the per
centage was much larger then than now,
and they had a business far greater than
was done by the Eelmonts, the Browns, or
the Drexels. At that tune / think
they had the only private wire be-
tween New York and Philadelphia, and it
was over that wire that startled oyer
ator received the ominous dispatch; "The
house has closed its doorsn When they
e,.4 - ~, l. ~. a
their operator too.
Probably Jay Gould has drawn more
and larger checks than any other iudivid
ual, except, perhaps, the treasurer of the
United States or some of the sub treas
urers, Many remember the easy off hand
manner in which he testified about draw
ing checks for subscription to the Amer
lean Gable company; he could not re-
member whether it was for five or ten
millions" Another of Mr.. Gould's big
checks WAS that which he drew in pay
ment for Col. SCOTS interest in the Tex
as and Pacific, all his stock and all
his consolidated bonds which he held.
The fate of the company was uncertain
when Mr.. Gould started for Philadelphia.
The policies of the two men were rad
ically different Mr.. Gould said that all
he wanted to run road was q general
manager and boy, and Col. Scott said
that no road could be run in that way;
true economy required a thorough organ
ization and competent managers as well
as employees. On that they disagreed
and Col. Scott, broken down and tired,
gave up the ambition of his life. He
had already made James p. Scott assist
ant to the president of the Texas and
Pacific, and he had hoped to leave him
that part of a great through transaction
al line working in close alliance with the
Pennsylvania system. HI found the bat
tie too hot, and when he had come to
terms Mr.. Gould took a sheet of note
paper and wrote upon it check on the
Fourth National bank of this city for a
little more than $2,400,000.
The biggest check ever drawn in the
United States was that given by John d.
Taylor, now dead, but then treasurer
of the Pennsylvania railroad, to Lee,
Higginson j. Co., of Boston, in payment
of the Boston stock in the Philadelphia,
Wilmington and Baltimore road. About
ten million of it was owned in Boston.
Nathiniel Thayer was the largest stock
holder, and he had agreed to deliver TO
pNJ ON"4N NhOh5 II W give nun II
interest and enable him to bring the road
into harmony with the Jersey Central
and then dispose of the two as thought
best. But Mr. Thayer was in his old age,
and he was unable TO fill the contract
Trough got out to put the Pennsylvania
people on their guard, and their repre-
sentatiyes met the Boston bankers in this
city and never adjourned until the pa
pers were drawn up by which they agreed
to deliver majersty of the stock in the
road at l40 on the dollar, which was about
10 per cent. more than they had ever
been able to sell it at, all the individual
stockholders being allowed to come and
sell their stock at that figure. They
brought it 60 the Boston bankers, and on
the first day of July the Boston patty re-
ceived Mr.. rhayers check on the Nation.
al Bank of Commerce in this city $14,-
256, 440. This is believed to be the lar
gest check ever drawn in this country.
That enormous sum of money was trans
ferred from Philadelphia TO Boston
through New York without causing more
than q ripple in the market and vet IL